James Carroll is Distinguished Scholar-in-Residence at Suffolk University in Boston and a columnist for the Boston Globe. He is author of eleven novels and seven works of nonfiction including Constantine's Sword. In this timely book, Carroll finds himself taking measure of what he believes. A former Catholic priest, he has difficulty taking seriously both zealous Christian fundamentalists and vituperative New Atheists. Along the way, Carroll has some interesting things to say about the Holocaust, the antiwar movement, and the slowly changing Catholic church.
A poignant question asked by Dietrich Bonhoeffer in a letter to his friend Eberhard Bethge frames Christ Actually: "What keeps gnawing at me is the question . . . who is Christ actually for us today?"
Carroll reminds us that Jesus was a Jew during hard times. Over the years, many have seen Jesus as "the ultimate man alone" but Bonhoeffer, after sampling the work of theologian Martin Buber, switches the emphasis to relationship. The Jewish theologian's masterpiece I and Thou came out in 1923 and the mantra that appealed to many of its readers is "All real living is meeting."
For Carroll, Jesus's choice of service over power and his ever-respectful attitude toward women and others on margins of society speak to the best that is within us. Carroll also presents an overview of the life and ministry of Paul and writes "Jewishness remained the given of Paul's preaching, as the God of Israel remained the object of his worship." The author adds: "The key to our salvation was not our faith, but God's faithfulness."
Carroll's take on Jesus ends with a call to imitate him rather than keep him on a holy pedestal. We can surely agree with that.
